Now Apple is going against the order granted directly from the US judiciary stating that the company help in an ongoing investigation over an alleged iPhone 5C used by Syed Farook the guy that killed 14 people back in December in San Bernardino. In a very rare open letter published on Apple.com, Apple CEO Tim Cook made it known that the FBI is essentially seeking that the company create some sort of “backdoor” for the iPhone’s in-built encryption system something which had been the company’s priority for many years. Cook also made it known that the “implications far beyond the legal case at hand,” undermining users’ privacy and giving the US government “the equivalent of a master key, capable of opening hundreds of millions of locks.”
“Doing so would hurt […] well-meaning and law-abiding citizens.
“The government is asking Apple to hack our own users and undermine decades of security advancements that protect our customers,”
“We can find no precedent for an American company being forced to expose its customers to a greater risk of attack.
“For years, cryptologists and national security experts have been warning against weakening encryption.
” Doing so would hurt only the well-meaning and law-abiding citizens who rely on companies like Apple to protect their data.”
This could be Apple saying that the FBI are demanding too much for requesting a new Operating system for iPhone devices that would undermine certain level of security characteristics. Since the introduction of iOS8, Apple had stopped storing encryption keys that potentially allow third-parties to unlock users’ data, essentially tying its own hands so it cannot comply with orders like that in the San Bernardino case.
Since even standard decryption engine would take longer time to write, its still unclear how Apple inc would bypass this feature if it eventually give in to the orders of the Federal Bureau. Still, Tim Cook had made it known to the FBI his own point which is not jeopardizing user’s totality of their secrecy and privacy.
Cook also made it known that this would make it easier for an iPhone to be unlocked using a “brute force” attack — using a powerful computer to input hundreds of thousands of combinations in quick succession.
Apple has warned that other governments will copy American demands for a backdoor..
There was an iPhone 5C phone which was owned by Syed Farook…the guy behind the San Bernardino shooting. Now the FBI agencies are trying to gain full access to this device so as to access data on it since the FBI believed that they must’ve had some sort of communication, back up or some other vital information on the device so is the attempt to crack the device.
Court papers say that accessing the data required technical assistance that Apple “declined to provide voluntarily,” leading to the order from the federal judge demanding help.
Help unlocking an iPhone might only be the first concession
In an open letter sent by the company’s CEO Tim Cook, he notes that the FBI’s legal basis for their demand comes from a federal statue from 1789,known as the All Writs Act. Now, if the US government would use this act to make all iPhones easier to unlock, it could he as simple as the government demanding a type of “Surveillance Software to intercept your personal data like Messages, Access to your health records or your financial data, track your location or in fact have easier access to your phone’s microphone or camera all without you knowing about it at all.”
Now Apple might be trying yo fight the order which would be significant to the ongoing battle between the tech firm and the government over user’s data.
Since Apple’s objection to the grant becomes the topic of the day, Other high tech companies like Google, Inc. Microsoft have all spoken against the decryption as it would weaken user’s priority of being a sole owner of their personal data rather cause more harm than good.
While Tim Cook went to the White House last month only to criticize the Administration of the Government for failing to publicly defend encryption of user data.
Tim Cook also made it known in his concluding message that…
“While we believe the FBI’s intentions are good, it would be wrong for the government to force us to build a backdoor into our products. And ultimately, we fear that this demand would undermine the very freedoms and liberty our government is meant to protect.”
But as the case may be, who wins? US government up against Apple…since his wouldn’t be a thing that makes sense in Apple’s view, the US government might have to give up facing another means of getting the vital information it so demands.